Iberanime

Convention
Name:	Iberanime
Dates:	2010-current
Frequency:	bi-annual
Location:	Porto and Lisbon, Portugal
Type:	Procon
Focus:	anime
Organization:
Founder:
Founding Date:	2010
URL:	https://www.iberanime.com/
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Iberanime is an annual anime convention in Porto and Lisbon, Portugal. The convention is split between the two biggest cities in Portugal, gaining the name IberanimeLX (in Lisbon) and IberanimeOPO (in Porto), with one of the bi-annual events happening typically around March and the other around October each year since the convention's inception.

With the growth of the convention's popularity, its size and the number of sponsors also grew. Although it focuses mainly on anime and manga, it sees attendees from non-anime fandoms yearly.

It is, at the time of creation of the page (2023) the biggest anime convention in Portugal.

Complaints and Controversies

Artists' treatment over the years

One of the biggest attractions of Iberanime is its Artist Alley and artist guests, but over the years the convention has treated its artists rather badly, with many fans boycotting the event.

One of the complaints is regarding the high prices for tables in the Artist Alley (AA), together with lack of space and bad organization (sometimes with tickets already being sold at discount and many of the artists who wish to participate not yet having received their acceptance e-mail thus hindering fanart production for the con and damaging artists' profit).

Artists have also felt slighted due to Iberanime's lack of transparency in choosing artists for the AA, since many artists cannot ever secure a table there, while known tracers, art thieves, AI "artists" and NFT creators seem to easily get a spot. Fans repeatedly asked for clear participation guidelines without ever getting an answer. Fans are also discouraged from shopping in the artist alley, firstly, due to lax control of rip-offs and counterfeit art present in different areas of the convention, at much cheaper prices, and secondly, because the AA space is often to the side, badly advertised, too small and without enough entrances, leading to large queues and lack of walking space, not allowing fans to approach their favourite artists. Artists and fans have seemingly had their voices ignored for many years until an artist's tweet gained popularity and got an official response from Iberanime's Twitter (X). The Artist's tweet thread follows.

Nos últimos anos tanto eu como outros colegas artistas temos vindo a deixar feedback sobre o artist's alley/ ala dos artistas às organizações dos respetivos eventos na esperança de obter melhoramentos nas condições e tratamento que nos é dado, com resultados muito limitados.

O nosso feedback é maioritariamente ignorado e nas poucas ocasiões em que recebemos respostas estas têm tendência para ser vagas e inconclusivas.

O evento com mais afluência a nivel nacional em que temos a oportunidade de talvez expor o nosso trabalho é o Iberanime.

O valor de uma mesa no AA do Iberanime subiu desde o ano passado de 125€ para 221.40€ (180€ + IVA), um aumento de quase 80%, e espero sinceramente estar errada mas do que se tem verificado em anos anteriores, parece-me pouco provável que as condições oferecidas tenham melhorado proporcionalmente.

Os critérios de seleção não são claros, não há nada na seleção de artistas aceites que indique um processo de avaliação pensado e aos inquéritos enviados sobre o assunto ao Iberanime não há respostas conclusivas. Num email de feedback que enviei no ano passado em que, entre outras coisas, mencionei que 'gostaria muito que os parâmetros de seleção fossem mais claros e que o regulamento fosse levado um pouco mais a sério' a resposta que recebi da parte do Iberanime foi a seguinte:

(transcrição da captura de ecrã) "A Avenida dos Artista é um orgulho muito grande do Iberanime, há muito tempo que tem vindo a ser melhorada.

Fazemos questão de manter e tentar melhorar edição para edição, mesmo nunca cobrindo os custos com a mesma, fazemos questão de a manter.

Em relação à seleção, é sempre subjetiva, e a avaliação é sempre em função dos trabalhos enviados (links) e revisto por vários elements da equipa. Iremos estudar o processo de decisão, no sentido de o melhorar."

'Somos um orgulho muito grande' mas não merecemos um regulamento que é cumprido nem um processo de seleção que reflita o nosso esforço e qualidade do nosso trabalho. 'Somos um orgulho muito grande' mas são aceites no AA bancas com arte traced, revendedores de produtos do AliExpress e pessoal que faz NFTs. 'Somos um orgulho muito grande' mas o Iberanime vai ter um workshop de 'Como contar uma história em mangá' dada por alguém que publicou livros 'ilustrados' por AI.

O Iberanime publicita-se como sendo 'o maior evento de cultura pop japonesa em Portugal', e infelizmente apesar de todo o evento girar à volta de conteúdo criado por artistas e pessoas criativas, os artistas locais continuam a ser consecutivamente lesados. Já por duas vezes, nestes ultimos meses, controvérsia criada nos comentários dos posts da conta oficial do Iberanime fez a organização voltar atrás em decisões anunciadas.

Se estão a ler isto, gostaria de acreditar que vêem valor no trabalho que fazemos, por isso vos peço: se tiverem possibilidade, façam barulho. Deixem comentários, enviem dms, emails [[email protected]], partilhem isto, falem entre vocês. Como expositores a nossa palavra não é suficiente, por favor deixem as organizações saber o valor que trazemos aos eventos e que o nosso esforço e trabalho merecem ser respeitados.

(A quem chegou até ao fim, obrigada e um beijinho)

NiseStarmin's Twitter (X) https://twitter.com/NiseStarmin/status/1649410364025581568

---

During the past years, other artist colleagues and I have sent feedback regarding the Artist Alley to the organizers of the respective events, in hopes of getting better conditions and better treatment, with very limited results.

Our feedback is mostly ignored and in the few occasions in which we've gotten responses, these have the tendency to be vague and inconclusive.

The event with the most influence at a national level in which we have the opportunity to showcase our work is Iberanime.

The value of a table at Iberanime's AA has risen since last year, from 125€ to 221,40€ (180€ plus tax), an increase of almost 80%, and I sincerely hope to be wrong, but from has been seen in past years, it seems very unlikely that the offered conditions have proportionately gotten better.

The selection criteria isn't clear, there's nothing in the selection of accepted artists that indicates a thought out evaluation process and there are no conclusive answers to the inquiries sent to Iberanime about the topic. In a feedback e-mail I sent last year, in which, amongst other things, I mentioned that I "would really like the selection parameters to be clearer and for the regulation to be taken a tad more seriously" the answer I received from Iberanime was the following:

"The Artist's Alley is a great pride of Iberanime, and it has since long been improved. We make sure to keep the quality of it and to try and make it better, edition to edition, even when the presence of AA never covers its own costs, we make sure to keep it in Iberanime.

In regards to the selection, it is always very subjective, and the evaluation is always related to the work sent to us (links) and reviewed by many elements of the team.

We will study the decision process, so as to better it."

'We are a great pride' but we don't deserve a regulation that is followed nor a selection process that reflects our effort and quality of our work. 'We are a great pride' but traced art, AliExpress resellers and NTF makers are accepted to be at AA. 'We are a great pride' mas Iberanime will have "How to tell a story in manga" workshop given by someone who published AI illustrated books.

Iberanime publicizes itself as being 'the biggest Japanese pop culture event in Portugal', and unfortunately, although the whole idea of the event is centred around content created by artists and creatives, the local artists are continuously wronged.

Twice now, in these last few months, controvercy created in the comment section of the Iberanime offical account posts has made the organization roll back on announced decisions.

If you're reading this, I'd like to believe that you can see the value in the work we do, so I ask you: if you can, make some noise. Leave comments, send DMs, e-mails [[email protected]], share this, talk amongst each other. As Artists our word isn't enough, so please let the organizers know the value we bring to events and that our effort and work deserve to be respected.

(To those who have read this until the end, thank you and a kiss)

Translation and formatting by Aliandry

This and other related issues have been covered by fan news in the country.

AI art and 2023 LX poster

The 2023 official poster for the Lisbon event was created using AI and fans also complained that art used to promote the event was also made using AI. These complaints reached Iberanime and the organization hired artist Edo Haruma to design the new poster.

Many other posters by Iberanime have been accused of being created using AI or at the very least, using free assets.

It seems that after the callout, Iberanime has started a poster contest, asking fans to submit their art with the chance of being chosen to make the next poster for the event. Many fans have complained that this still abuses the artists, because they're submitting their art for free and won't see any kind of payment.